Ms D Janusz, Employment Advisor For the v Mr R Mathea, Managing Director — 2022

The claimant brought a complaint of unauthorised deduction from wages covering unpaid wages for March and April 2021 and accrued holiday pay on termination. The respondent said it was entitled to deduct losses said to arise from poor work and spoiled baked goods.

Employment Judge George found that the claimant worked 19 days in March 2021 and 14 days in April 2021, and that the bonus rate was £12 per day. The tribunal accepted that there had been quality problems and that the claimant had signed an addendum on 12 April 2021 purporting to allow deductions for quality issues directly attributable to him, but it was not satisfied that the respondent had shown the deductions made fell within the scope of that addendum or that the claimant was solely responsible for the relevant losses. The tribunal also noted that the March payment was due on 15 April 2021, so deductions could not be justified by conduct occurring before the addendum took effect.

The tribunal calculated gross sums of £1,919.68 for March pay, £1,343.36 for April pay, £168 for 14 days' bonus and £459 for holiday pay, totalling £3,890.04 gross. After crediting a £200 part-payment and applying tax and national insurance, it ordered the respondent to pay £3,110.37 net. That was the bottom-line award recorded in the judgment.